Josh Harris is reportedly close to completing the purchase of the New Jersey Devils. (AP Photo)

Rapid progress on a sale has been made over the past week, and while a deal is not done, no hangups are expected to emerge, according to the report. The NHL's Board of Governors is expected to complete a vote on the transaction by Thursday, according to the report.

Harris' group will cover the sizable debt that current owner Jeffrey Vanderbeek compiled, and it will need to repay the $30 million that Andrew Barroway loaned the team earlier this summer. It appeared for a while that Barroway would purchase the team, but his exclusive negotiating window with Vanderbeek expired in late July.

Any sale would give the new owner a controlling stake in the Devils, plus the operating rights to the Prudential Center in Newark, N.J., the Devils' home, according to the report.

Vanderbeek is expected to retain a minority share of the team, according to the report.

The Devils have been in financial trouble for the past several years, so new ownership can only help make things better with regard to the team's bottom line.